News:

“Treat the earth well: it was not given to you by your parents, it was loaned to you by your children. We do not inherit the Earth from our Ancestors; we borrow it from our Children.”Ancient American Indian Proverb Civilitas successit barbarum Ubi Jus - Ibi Remedium ----> Equity sees that as done what ought to be done Equity will not suffer a wrong to be without a remedy - Equity delights in equality - One who seeks equity must do equity - Equity aids the vigilant, not those who slumber on their rights - Equity imputes an intent to fulfill an obligation - Equity acts in personam - Equity abhors a forfeiture - Equity does not require an idle gesture - He who comes into equity must come with clean hands - Equity delights to do justice and not by halves -Equity will not complete an imperfect gift - Equity will not allow a statute to be used as a cloak for fraud

The changing of the guards in motor racing is underway: both Porsche and Mercedes-Benz have announced they will join the FIA Formula E electric-car racing series in 2019.

To make that possible, both German teams will end their tenures in respected motorsport; Porsche will end its World Endurance Championship LMP1 program, while Mercedes plans to pull out of DTM (German Touring Car Championship).

The news leaves Toyota as the only factory team left in the LMP1 class; both Audi and BMW appear to be reevaluating their own commitments to the DTM series as well.

The announcements reflect the growing promotional importance of Formula E to automakers and for their future electric cars.

Formula E will ultimately give electric-car makers the chance to put their own battery and other electric-drive technologies to the test in competitive racing.

In Porsche's announcement, it said its entrance into Formula E will bolster the company's program to build pure GT vehicles and fully-electric sports cars.

The company's first production electric model will be based on the Mission E concept car shown in 2015, a smaller four-door sedan likely to be priced below the Panamera sedan.

Porsche's aggressive pricing strategy could put the production Mission E up against fully-specced Tesla Model 3 sedans—but what Porsche learns from its factory Formula E team will likely influence all of its future electric cars.

Formula E will make a few notable changes in its future seasons, which are likely factors that helped sway Mercedes-Benz and Porsche to join the motorsport.

READ THIS: Why all electric-car owners should follow Formula E racing

The series will no longer require two cars per driver with the potential of a mid-race car change, as it doubles the capacity of the standard battery pack used by all teams.

Currently, Formula E teams must run four cars, but that requirement will fall to two cars in Season 5—a testament to improved battery technology since the series' launch in 2013.

New York City ePrix FIA Formula E electric-car race, Red Hook, Brooklyn, July 2017New York City ePrix FIA Formula E electric-car race, Red Hook, Brooklyn, July 2017Porsche and Mercedes-Benz will join Audi, BMW, Jaguar, and French electric-car maker Renault among others in 2019 when season six of the motorsport gets underway.

The series' goal has long been to change the public's perception of electric cars, and the entry of two additional and very prestigious German marques will clearly help in that regard.

Agelbert NOTE: The EV owner survey (free 30 page portion of a $500 report) that I downloaded and promised to report on has several informative graphs but no hard cost figures on EV ownership. That is in the full report and I cannot afford to buy it.

That said, I did learn a few things that I will pass on to you:

A Volt is an Opel Ampera in Europe.

Most EV owners overwhelmingly wanted a fast charge option (that added about a thousand dollars to the price ) even though over 90% of those EV owners DID NOT use fast charging in their routine daily lives.

Most EV owners love new technology. NOTE: There is a big split here between Tesla owners and all the rest. The Tesla owners are way too Jetson Tech freaky, which is sort of expected since they dished out so much money for an EV.

Most owners of EVs in the Leaf level of cost wanted economy and a tool to help them use less energy all around, not just in transportation.

Most owners of EVs in the Leaf level of cost (and about 30% of Tesla model S owners too!) reported being inspired to lower their household energy consumption after buying their EV.

All EV owners reported lower operation and maintence costs than on their previous gas guzzler cars.

In actual use EV range anxiety is not a factor because EV owners bone up quickly on where the charging stations are, in case of need, and plan every move they make. This is a big difference from when they owned gas guzzlers, and some reading this might say, AHA! the EV "restricts freedom!". NOPE. What it does is make people do something they do not like to do: THINK about energy use and become more conscious of when and how it is used so as to NOT ABUSE it. The narcissistic greed balls among us will find this "restrictive", of course. But greed balls do not understand biosphere math. EV owners learn it quickly. After about a month, the EV owner is conscious of, and attuned to, energy use like never before. They settle into an energy and cost saving routine that, except for longer trips which occur maybe two or three times a YEAR, does not require planning or restrict their movement. All the hand wringing from the peanut gallery gas guzzlers about "EV range anxiety" is, in practice, unjustified. Gas guzzler owners will say that EV owners are exhibiting endowment bias. The survey report admits there must be some bias because non-EV owners are not in the survey. That said, ALL the EV owners reported having owned gas guzzlers previously (in some cases they still have one). So the "bias" of EV owners, is really an objective conclusion reached after having driven gas guzzlers all their adult lives. That IMHO, is NOT a bias; it's sound critcal thinking.

The overwhelming majority of EV owners is male, not female. This is depressing to me, but I understand it. Females of our species, though assumed to be more "environmentally conscious and caring" than males, are actually naturally reticent to try new things. IOW, they are far more conservative than the average male. Women, in general, dislike risk. What, pray tell, is "risky" about owning an EV for a woman? Well, IMHO, the propaganda out there against EVs is NOT what is keeping women from being too keen to buy them or influencing them to view EVs as "too risky".

What is "risky" about EVs for women is that they cannot "fill up the tank" at all those gas stations out there. Women are more culturally acclimated than men. They LIKE to be part of the herd. Owning an EV is, at present, an act of defiance to herd mentality and a potential source of gossip for her female friends. So, more females are in the "wait and see" category than males. This will totally flip when the DAMAGE to the environment of owning a gas guzzler becomes part of the herd knowledge. I am being a bit long winded about this issue because my wife simply will not hear of owning an EV. I told her they can no longer gouge us for mufflers, catalytic converters, emission sensor replacements, cooling system hoses, coolant, oil changes, transmission fluids, frequent brake jobs and other inspection fun and games. She counters that the mechanics will "think of something else" to gouge us with and EVs cost too much money up front. I tell there is an offer for a NEW 2017 Leaf lease (for Vermont residents) that, including the $1,999 (includes first $199 monthly payment) down payment plus 35 $199 payments and residual - cost to buy - of $8,207 plus cost to own $300 fee comes to a TOTAL of $17,471.00 (manufacturer's rebate of $13,400 ) plus taxes (which are much lowerbecause the vehicle is three years old at that point), not the high $31,565 MSRP. She says there must be a gimmick or they want to offload them because they are lemons and can't sell them. I tell her about the low operation and maintenance and that, since she mostly uses the car for groceries (we drive less than 2,000 miles a YEAR, so the 12,000 mile per year lease "limitation" is irrelevant to us), we don't have a range anxiety issue. She says she doesn't want to have to run an extension cord from our manufactured home to the car after she does errands (we do not own the land - we rent it - we CANNOT build a garage and put a charging unit in it).

I certainly don't agree with it, but now I sympathize more with Adam's decision to eat that fruit.

If the following has some hidden cost I am not seeing, I don't know what it is.

Tesla was on a death watch notice nearly one decade ago. News coverage and editorials frequently postulated Tesla’s coming demise. It couldn’t produce cars. No one wanted its cars. Its cars broke down around every turn. Where would people charge? Where could the cars be fixed?

Full article packed with lots of CROW for people like Tyler Durden of ZeroHedge to eat.

I got my Model S in February of 2014. It was a fabulous car, which convinced both me and my wife that we will never purchase another car with an internal combustion engine. The car did have its problems (Three years of Tesla ownership by Christian Bull on A Tesla Consumption Log), but all in all I was super happy with it.

I was planning to replace it with a Jaguar I-pace which comes out next year. Not because I was unhappy with the Tesla, but because I’ve always wanted a Jaguar and I was never planning to keep the Model S for more than four years anyway.

This winter that plan changed a little, and I needed to replace the S sooner than I had intended to. The I-pace also looks like it’s going to be too small for my family, so I ended up replacing my Model S with a Model X in May of this year.

Because of a bit of luck with timing, the Model S was for all intents and purposes free. I spent maybe $850 on maintenance (services at 20,000 and 40,000 km), but I got a big discount on the first service for a couple of reasons), and when I traded the car in to Tesla in May 2017, I got 75% of the original purchase price back - that was just me being lucky with the USD to Norwegian Krone exchange rate. The depreciation was made up for in fuel savings.

Teslas are not perfect unicorns. They are complex machines, with bells and whistles (retracting door handles, falcon wing doors) that are mechanical and will eventually break, just like stuff breaks on regular cars. In total, however, I’m quite certain that over time maintenance costs will be significantly lower for a Tesla than a comparable ICE powered car.

SACRAMENTO — In a decision with lasting implications for the growth of electric vehicles, state regulators on Thursday approved Volkswagen’s plan to invest nearly $1 billion in California’s EV network as penalty for its diesel-emission cheating scandal.

The plan approved by the state Air Resources Board would inject $800 million over 10 years into California’s electric vehicle market, including new, universal charging stations, a model “Green City” in Sacramento and education about zero-emission vehicles.

The massive investment could reshape the state’s budding network of electric vehicle charging stations while supporting Gov. Jerry Brown’s goal to have 1.5 million zero-emission vehicles on California roads by 2025.

San Jose and San Francisco are two of six cities slated for expanded community charging stations. A Volkswagen subsidiary, Electrify America, also will target low-income communities for at least 35 percent of the projects.

Chairwoman Mary Nichols said it was a long process to refine the plan, but added “we’ve gained a lot of confidence that it’s going to be a success.”

But critics said Volkswagen’s vast plan could chill competition and innovation in an emerging industry, and it snubs hydrogen fueling stations.

Volkswagen settled with federal and state regulators over a scheme to evade pollution standards in its 2- and 3-liter diesel-powered vehicles. The German automaker rigged software in nearly 600,000 diesel cars and trucks to pass federal emission tests, while the vehicles spouted unacceptable pollution levels.

In California, Volkswagen agreed to spend $1.2 billion through two separate environmental programs: at least $381 million for cutting pollution and $800 million for the infrastructure trust fund.

Volkswagen has also agreed to spend $1.2 billion for EV support throughout the rest of the country.

Environmentalists, lawmakers, automakers and EV charging companies fought over early details of the state plan, forcing the German automaker to include more guarantees to spend money in poor communities more likely to be polluted.

Sacramento Mayor Darrell Steinberg endorsed the deal, saying it would bring clean vehicle technology to underserved communities. “We will not waste this opportunity,” he said.

Maxwell Baumhefner, attorney for the Natural Resources Defense Council, said the plan will help the state catch-up with demand for EV stations.

“The timing is right,” he said, noting that Electrify America has already begun building projects in other states. “It’s time to start breaking ground.”

Most EV charging companies sent letters of support for the plan, but ChargePoint, a leading electric vehicle charging network based in Campbell, urged the board to create more oversight. ChargePoint Vice President Anne Smart testified Thursday that the company was “still disappointed with the lack of details” and concerned the plan could chill other EV charging investments throughout the state.

The Electrify America investment plan will bring charging stations along highways and into overlooked neighborhoods, helping define the state’s electric vehicle corridors for years.

The projects will be split in four, $200 million increments built over 30-month periods. The Air Resources Board will oversee the project and gather regular input, including from automakers and charging companies.

The first phase calls for $120 million to build 400 charging stations with between 2,000 and 3,000 chargers. About $75 million will be used to develop a high-speed, highway charging network, mostly consisting of 150 kilowatt fast-chargers. The other $45 million will build community charging stations in six metro areas: San Jose, San Francisco, Sacramento, Fresno, Los Angeles and San Diego.

Another $44 million will build a “Green City” in Sacramento. It will provide access to zero-emission vehicles to low-income residents, through ride-sharing and other programs.

As part of the 10-year comprehensive plan, Electrify America will build a nationwide network of fast-charging stations with universal technology. Mark McNabb, CEO of Electrify America, said the company wants to have an impact beyond its 10-year plan.

“This is our legacy,” he told board members.

Several board members expressed concern over whether Volkswagen would live up to its promises. Board member Hector De La Torre said the ARB would “trust but verify” the company’s progress. But, he added, “it’s our obligation to get this thing going.”

The report updated its future cost projections to reflect further steep cost reductions in the years ahead, with a price per kilowatt-hour in 2025 of $109 and in 2030 of $73.

Cost reductions on this order would result in EVs achieving cost parity with some classes of conventional vehicles by 2025—and across most vehicle segments by 2029, according to the report. EV sales are expected to really take off once they achieve cost parity with conventional vehicles, as the vehicles are significantly less expensive to fuel and maintain.

The acceleration in the EV market is great news for climate protection, too. A recent assessment found that zero-emission vehicles, such as EVs, need to comprise 40 percent of new vehicles sold by 2030 in order for the automotive sector to be on a path to achieve critical mid-century emissions targets. With the momentum in the EV market, we have a critical window to further boost this market by ensuring greater access of electric vehicles and a cleaner electric grid to power them.

Unfortunately, the U.S. has not demonstrated the same appetite for national leadership on EVs as other countries. Even worse, we are going in the wrong direction—with serious implications for our health, climate and economy.

Instead of leading, the Trump Administration is undermining critical clean air and climate protections including the landmark clean car standards for 2022 to 2025. The actions of individual automakers, however, tell a very different story from the "can't do it" mantra put forth by the administration.

In their commitments, investments and new product introductions, automotive manufacturers and their suppliers are clearly telling us that low emissions vehicles can play a much bigger role in the near future.

The fact is that automakers can meet the existing 2022 to 2025 federal greenhouse gas standards through deployment of current conventional technology alone. Now, in addition to the robust pathway automakers have through existing technologies, EV adoption rates in the U.S. will be 10 percent in 2025 if the Bloomberg New Energy Finance forecasts hold true. This is further proof that the existing standards are highly achievable. Rather than weaken the standard, the administration should be pursuing options to further scale EVs over the next decade.

Investing in clear car solutions is sound economic policy. These investments enhance the global competitiveness of the U.S. automotive sector.

This is why the UAW in a letter supporting the existing 2022 to 2025 clean car standards, noted:

"UAW members know firsthand that Corporate Average Fuel Economy (CAFE) and greenhouse gas (GHG) standards have spurred investments in new products that employ tens of thousands of our members."

Like other key aspects of the potential of the emerging EV marketplace, the role it can play as an employer has been in the news recently, too.

An AM General assembly plant in northern Indiana was acquired by electric vehicle manufacture SF Motors. The company announced that it will make a $30 million investment in the facility and keep on all the 430 employees.

Fittingly, most of the 430 jobs that were saved to manufacture an emerging, clean technology are represented by UAW Local 5—the oldest continuously operating UAW Local in the country.

In this instructable, i will teach you how to make an electric bicycle at home.

Also, this electric bike was selected and presented in the North India Solar Summit (NISS) 2016 and it remained in the news papers and web articles for many days. I would also like to share its news articles with you.

With the electric car revolution getting a big boost last week with the official introduction of the Tesla Model 3, it may seem as though the world is well on its way to pollution-free transportation. But outside the limelight that shines on the latest EV drag race and claims of cars with 1,000 horsepower or more, the real focus of clean transportation advocates is on electric trucks, the workhorses that carry freight and cargo.

The International Energy Agency believes keeping global temperature rises below 2° Celsius depends in large part upon the electrification of some 600 million vehicles worldwide — half of them trucks. “In Europe, less than 5% of vehicles are commercial vehicles or heavy duty trucks, but they contribute to almost 20% of greenhouse gas emissions,” says Ananth Srinivasan, mobility expert with research consultancy Frost & Sullivan.

Electric truck chassis from SEA Automotive in Australia

Agelbert NOTE: Trucks made by FAW in China are BIG Trucks, not pickup trucks.

In Melbourne, Australia, SEA Automotive is busy adding electric powertrains to trucks manufactured in China by FAW. Tony Fairweather, CEO of SEA Automotive, says his firm realized a few years ago that electric commercial vehicles were becoming economically viable much faster than predicted. “The components are cheaper every time we go to buy. There’s not many industries where that happens.”

Agelbert NOTE:The above is a Workhorse W-15 PHEV pickup truck, not a pure electric pickup truck. It is only available as part of a fleet purchase. *

Quote

* The Workhorse W-15 is the first plug-in range extended electric pickup built from the ground up by an OEM. Lithium ion battery cells from Panasonic provide an 80 mile all‑electric range, while the onboard generator works to recharge while driving to get the job done. The W-15 chassis sets a new technology standard for fleet vehicle tech.http://workhorse.com/pickup/

Electric cars may drive 10 miles one day and 100 miles the next. They may also be used for long-distance trips occasionally. But a truck usually follows a predictable daily route where the range needed is known in advance. That means most owners of electric trucks don’t need to worry about recharging their vehicles out on the road. That can be done at the end of the work day with charging equipment installed at the home location.

With all the hype and hysteria about Tesla in the news lately, it’s easy to lose sight of some of the other companies that are making progress building more sustainable vehicles that will help lower carbon emissions from the transportation sector. Cars are important, but trucks spew out more carbon emissions each year. Workhorse, based in Ohio with a factory in Indiana, is elbowing its way to the front in a crowded field of competitors.

Workhorse W-15 plug in hybrid pickup truck

In a recent conversation with Charged EVs, Workhorse CEO Steve Burns shared some of the reasons why his company’s W-15 plug in hybrid pickup truck is getting so much attention from fleet owners. Just as the Tesla Model 3 has a long list of reservation holders, Workhorse also has received hundreds of pre-orders for the W-15 from Duke Energy, Southern California Public Power Authority, and Ryder Systems. In addition, municipalities like Columbus, Ohio and Orlando, Florida, have orders pending for plug in hybrid pickup.

Workhorse W-15 Built For Fleets

What makes a plug in hybrid pickup truck so appealing to fleets? Two factors, says Burns. First is total cost of ownership. “Green is good. Everybody wants to be green. It’s a nice by-product. But we realized that if electric is going to take off, it has to be less expensive than gas. It really comes down to that, at least in the fleet world. A meat-and-potatoes fleet guy says, ‘What is the most economical way I can operate my fleet?’ We come in and tell him we are less expensive than a gas vehicle.”

The second big factor is reliability. Fleet operators want to know the trucks are dependable and will last a long time. Workhorse has developed a close working relationship with UPS and that relationship is growing. “UPS is not a bakery that uses trucks. They are a truck company,” Burns says. “So, they are the hardest to satisfy. There’s no Consumer Reports .. in this space. So, if a fleet wants to know if something works, they look to the leaders.

“UPS is the largest commercial truck fleet in the United States. So, it took many, many years, and a lot of miles, to build something rugged enough for them, and at a price point they can justify. A fleet has to believe the vehicle is going to last. They have to believe it’s going to last for 20 years. UPS keeps their trucks for 20 years.”

Why A Range Extender Engine?

The W-15 will have a plug in hybrid powertrain using an internal combustion range extender engine sourced from BMW. Tesla has already announced it plans to bring an all electric pickup to market. Why does Burns feel the he needs the gas engine, too? “We really don’t think an all electric pickup truck will work, because of what people put pickup trucks through. Occasionally they have to do something very hard. Tow a lot, haul a lot, climb the side of a mountain, go far.

“Duke Energy, if there’s a hurricane in Charlotte, all the Duke trucks from all the neighboring states pack up and head for Charlotte. Although they normally go 50 miles a day, once in a while they’ve got to go 400. Once in a while, they put three big transformers in the back. We built this so that it covers our average day, and then we’ve got a little insurance policy up there. [Even] if it’s a weird day, you’re always going to complete your rounds.”

“We found that out with UPS. If you tell a major fleet that this vehicle is really good but doesn’t do all things, you’ve got to be careful where you put it, they don’t want to hear that. They just want it to be ubiquitous. We just say this can do anything a gas pickup can do. 360 days a year, you’re going to get 75 miles per gallon because you’re running it all electric, and the other 5 days, you’ll burn a little gasoline, but the show will always go on.”

The W-15 Is Ready To Work

The W-15 is job site ready. It comes with a built in light bar with yellow flashing hazard lights, a sprayed-in bed liner and a 7.2 kW power export module. A central touchscreen controls most functions and is designed so it can be operated while wearing work gloves. The company has a proprietary fleet management system called Metron that keeps fleet managers constantly updated on each vehicles location and condition at all times. Workhorse can update software wirelessly over the air.

Safety is a high priority for the W-15. In addition to a full complement of air bags, it is equipped with emergency braking and collision warning systems, lane keeping assistance, and adaptive cruise control. Workhorse expects the W-15 to achieve the highest ever safety ratings for a pickup truck.

Private Sales Possible

Burns keeps getting asked if the W-15 will be available to private customers and he has left the door open on that possibility — at least a little. ? “Well, I would’ve said no to that a little while ago, but a couple of things are happening. It’s really good looking. We built it to be modern and professional looking. We have some aerodynamics to it because we’re worried about energy. Some of our customers wanted a lower hood so they could see pedestrians easier. All that combined into a very unique looking pickup truck, good looking enough that every consumer that sees it says they want one.”

Steve Hanley I have been a car nut since the days when Rob Walker and Henry N. Manney, III graced the pages of Road & Track. Today, I use my trusty Miata for TSD rallies and occasional track days at Lime Rock and Watkins Glen. If it moves on wheels, I'm interested in it. Please follow me on Google + and Twitter.

With all the hype and hysteria about Tesla in the news lately, it’s easy to lose sight of some of the other companies that are making progress building more sustainable vehicles that will help lower carbon emissions from the transportation sector. Cars are important, but trucks spew out more carbon emissions each year. Workhorse, based in Ohio with a factory in Indiana, is elbowing its way to the front in a crowded field of competitors.

Workhorse W-15 plug in hybrid pickup truck

In a recent conversation with Charged EVs, Workhorse CEO Steve Burns shared some of the reasons why his company’s W-15 plug in hybrid pickup truck is getting so much attention from fleet owners. Just as the Tesla Model 3 has a long list of reservation holders, Workhorse also has received hundreds of pre-orders for the W-15 from Duke Energy, Southern California Public Power Authority, and Ryder Systems. In addition, municipalities like Columbus, Ohio and Orlando, Florida, have orders pending for plug in hybrid pickup.

Workhorse W-15 Built For Fleets

What makes a plug in hybrid pickup truck so appealing to fleets? Two factors, says Burns. First is total cost of ownership. “Green is good. Everybody wants to be green. It’s a nice by-product. But we realized that if electric is going to take off, it has to be less expensive than gas. It really comes down to that, at least in the fleet world. A meat-and-potatoes fleet guy says, ‘What is the most economical way I can operate my fleet?’ We come in and tell him we are less expensive than a gas vehicle.”

The second big factor is reliability. Fleet operators want to know the trucks are dependable and will last a long time. Workhorse has developed a close working relationship with UPS and that relationship is growing. “UPS is not a bakery that uses trucks. They are a truck company,” Burns says. “So, they are the hardest to satisfy. There’s no Consumer Reports .. in this space. So, if a fleet wants to know if something works, they look to the leaders.

“UPS is the largest commercial truck fleet in the United States. So, it took many, many years, and a lot of miles, to build something rugged enough for them, and at a price point they can justify. A fleet has to believe the vehicle is going to last. They have to believe it’s going to last for 20 years. UPS keeps their trucks for 20 years.”

Why A Range Extender Engine?

The W-15 will have a plug in hybrid powertrain using an internal combustion range extender engine sourced from BMW. Tesla has already announced it plans to bring an all electric pickup to market. Why does Burns feel the he needs the gas engine, too? “We really don’t think an all electric pickup truck will work, because of what people put pickup trucks through. Occasionally they have to do something very hard. Tow a lot, haul a lot, climb the side of a mountain, go far.

“Duke Energy, if there’s a hurricane in Charlotte, all the Duke trucks from all the neighboring states pack up and head for Charlotte. Although they normally go 50 miles a day, once in a while they’ve got to go 400. Once in a while, they put three big transformers in the back. We built this so that it covers our average day, and then we’ve got a little insurance policy up there. [Even] if it’s a weird day, you’re always going to complete your rounds.”

“We found that out with UPS. If you tell a major fleet that this vehicle is really good but doesn’t do all things, you’ve got to be careful where you put it, they don’t want to hear that. They just want it to be ubiquitous. We just say this can do anything a gas pickup can do. 360 days a year, you’re going to get 75 miles per gallon because you’re running it all electric, and the other 5 days, you’ll burn a little gasoline, but the show will always go on.”

The W-15 Is Ready To Work

The W-15 is job site ready. It comes with a built in light bar with yellow flashing hazard lights, a sprayed-in bed liner and a 7.2 kW power export module. A central touchscreen controls most functions and is designed so it can be operated while wearing work gloves. The company has a proprietary fleet management system called Metron that keeps fleet managers constantly updated on each vehicles location and condition at all times. Workhorse can update software wirelessly over the air.

Safety is a high priority for the W-15. In addition to a full complement of air bags, it is equipped with emergency braking and collision warning systems, lane keeping assistance, and adaptive cruise control. Workhorse expects the W-15 to achieve the highest ever safety ratings for a pickup truck.

Private Sales Possible

Burns keeps getting asked if the W-15 will be available to private customers and he has left the door open on that possibility — at least a little. ? “Well, I would’ve said no to that a little while ago, but a couple of things are happening. It’s really good looking. We built it to be modern and professional looking. We have some aerodynamics to it because we’re worried about energy. Some of our customers wanted a lower hood so they could see pedestrians easier. All that combined into a very unique looking pickup truck, good looking enough that every consumer that sees it says they want one.”

Steve Hanley I have been a car nut since the days when Rob Walker and Henry N. Manney, III graced the pages of Road & Track. Today, I use my trusty Miata for TSD rallies and occasional track days at Lime Rock and Watkins Glen. If it moves on wheels, I'm interested in it. Please follow me on Google + and Twitter.

The City of Los Angeles is serious about its commitment to combating climate change. It is adding hundreds of electric cars to its municipal fleet and making plans that will allow low-income residents to dump their older cars with high emissions for cleaner cars.

It is promoting many miles of bike paths. And the Los Angeles county public transportation system, known as the Metro, has just inked a deal with BYD to buy 60 electric buses for its fleet.

BYD-electric bus cutaway

BYD has its American headquarters in Los Angeles and operates a factory in nearby Lancaster, California.

The new contract will add 59 workers to the 600 strong BYD payroll. Most of the new hires will be residents of Los Angeles county, according to the terms of the deal. In all, the Metro will pay $138 million for the 60 BYD buses plus 35 60-foot-long electric buses from New Flyer of America Inc, which is located in Crookston, Minnesota.

Below please enjoy a present use for used buses that RE may like. I certainly do! I think that used electric buses, with some solar panels nearby, would be the ultimate in sustainable, cosy but roomy, iving.

The City of Los Angeles is serious about its commitment to combating climate change. It is adding hundreds of electric cars to its municipal fleet and making plans that will allow low-income residents to dump their older cars with high emissions for cleaner cars.

It is promoting many miles of bike paths. And the Los Angeles county public transportation system, known as the Metro, has just inked a deal with BYD to buy 60 electric buses for its fleet.

BYD-electric bus cutaway

BYD has its American headquarters in Los Angeles and operates a factory in nearby Lancaster, California.

The new contract will add 59 workers to the 600 strong BYD payroll. Most of the new hires will be residents of Los Angeles county, according to the terms of the deal. In all, the Metro will pay $138 million for the 60 BYD buses plus 35 60-foot-long electric buses from New Flyer of America Inc, which is located in Crookston, Minnesota.

Below please enjoy a present use for used buses that RE may like. I certainly do! I think that used electric buses, with some solar panels nearby, would be the ultimate in sustainable, cosy but roomy, iving.

10 Electric Planes that Already Exist and Change the Future of Air Travel

Automotive Territory: Trending News & Car Reviews

Published on Aug 2, 2017

Electrically powered vehicles are conquering our planet and it is a fact. Many cities like Singapore and Hamburg have vouched to replace their public transport fleets with emission-free vehicles by 2030 and many auto manufacturers have already established roadmaps and schedules for going all in electric. Boats and submarines are getting equipped with e-motors and even far reached world like Mars is being explored by Curiosity Rover thanks to an electric powertrain. But is the sky the limit for electric motors?

Apparently not, because up until today there is quite a number of already operational all-electric flying vessels that traverse the skies braking the stereotype that efficient and clean air travel is impossible on Earth. Today, we would like to share with you some knowledge about the first electric planes, so that when in 50 years all of the aircraft in the sky are electric, you will know how it all started. Enjoy your flight.

An alternative title to the above was: “Slow & Steady Is A Recipe For Disruption.” But the story is a little more complicated than that.

Naturally, as the director of CleanTechnica, I get to talk to a lot of EV leaders at conferences around the world. We also get millions of views a month and a lot of feedback on and off the record*.

Some of that feedback is particularly useful for completing the EV transition puzzle in my mind. A couple of examples are two discussions I had earlier this year with some auto industry movers & shakers.

These discussions have been tingling inside my head because of the context they seem to add. The information I’ve gleaned has been aching for a write-up but delayed by so many other stores. However, recent quotes from Magna CEO Don Walker pushed me over the edge and finally got me to write this piece up.

Now some details may have leaked out, in the form of an e-mail conversation between Tesla and the Nevada Department of Motor Vehicles seen by the Reuters news service.

In those documents, Tesla sought state approval to test a prototype of its electric semi in Nevada that will contain self-driving software.

California DMV officials told Reuters they were to meet Tesla yesterday to discuss the company's "efforts with autonomous trucks" as well.

According to Reuters, the Tesla semi is likely to offer the capability of "platooning."

That's the term for automated vehicles traveling very close together at speed, which significantly cuts aerodynamic drag.

Vehicles that platoon must continually communicate with each other and the infrastructure around them, but the distances between them are far too short to allow a human driver to react in time to emergencies.

Agelbert NOTE: The widely assumed 10 year transition period for autonomus EV Semi Trucks is incorrect. They will be dominating in less than five years, simply because the sensor package is NOW cheap AND MORE reliable than a human driver.

The 1% want this profit over people automation. When they want something, it happens.

In this case ,securing the truck contents will become better paid than driving the truck.

Unfortunately for hopeful drivers planning on being semi truck riding security guards, I do not doubt that the 1% will try to make we-the-people pay for truck contents security with added taxation for added police highway monitoring, rather than doing the responsible thing and hiring a security guard to ride with the truck and ensure safe delivery of the goods, along with the required paperwork.

At any rate, when you see lots of Semi Trucks Platooning, EV Semi Platooning will be right there to replace every diesel semi truck on the roads.

The upside of this for the biosophere and people of good will is that the lung clogging, respiratory disease causing particulate matter and green house gas pollution on our roads will be much reduced and the big oil refineries will have to put their diesel fuel CRAP where the sun doesn't shine.